Bristol Bookkeeper Jody Lathrop Pleads Not Guilty to Fraud Charges

Burlington, Vermont – The grim streets of Burlington were jolted with the news that Jody Lathrop, 53, of Bristol, has pleaded not guilty to a host of serious federal charges including mail and wire fraud, tax evasion, and aiding the preparation of falsified tax returns.

According to the United States Attorney’s Office, Lathrop served as office manager and bookkeeper for Claire Lathrop Band Mill, Inc., a logging and wood chipping business. The indictment asserts that between 2014 and 2020, Lathrop embezzled over $400,000 through personal purchases, paying off her own credit card debts, and funding other private expenses. She is accused of manipulating the company’s accounting system to disguise these transactions as legitimate business costs.

Further charges reveal that Lathrop also manipulated corporate tax returns, causing an overstatement of more than $400,000 in business expenses. This fraudulent reporting led to her evading approximately $141,000 in personal income taxes between 2016 and 2019.

Jody Lathrop faces up to 20 years in prison for the mail and wire fraud charges, along with fines totaling up to $250,000 or twice the loss. The tax evasion and aiding charges carry sentences of up to five and three years respectively, with fines reaching $100,000.

The investigation was led by the Vermont office of the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (CI) and Homeland Security Investigations. Lathrop is represented by Mark Kaplan, Esq., while the prosecution team includes Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kimberly Ang and Gregory Waples.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Kevin J. Doyle released Lathrop on conditions pending trial, which has yet to be scheduled.